Sinŭiju

Sinŭiju, city, capital of North P’yŏngan do (province), northwestern North Korea. It was developed during the Japanese occupation (1910–45) at the Korean terminus of a railway bridge across the Yalu (Amnok) River, 7 miles (11 km) west of the old city of Ŭiju (Sinŭiju means “New Ŭiju”).

An open port 25 miles (40 km) from the mouth of the Yalu River, it grew commercially with the lumber industry, which uses the river to transport logs from inland forests. The chemical industry developed with the construction of the Sup’ung Dam (a hydroelectric complex) on the upper course of the river. During the Korean War (1950–53), Sinŭiju sustained heavy damages from bombing, but it has been rebuilt. Sinŭiju has a plant manufacturing enameled ironware. It is connected with P’yŏngyang by air, electric railway, and road and with the Chinese city of Dandong, across the Yalu, by a railway bridge that is 3,097 feet (944 metres) long. It is also linked with the Trans-Siberian Railroad through northeastern China (Manchuria), and North Korean trade with China is funneled through the city. In 2002, as part of a plan to attract foreign investment, Sinŭiju was named a “special administrative region”; the designation carried with it a measure of legal and administrative independence. Pop. (2008) 334,031.

This article was most recently revised and updated by Lorraine Murray, Associate Editor.